Toppling Goliath Oktoberfest

Review Date 10/2/2023  By John Staradumsky

  Style: Oktoberfest   Brewery: Toppling Goliath   Country: USA   State: Iowa   $ Per OZ: $.15 (B)   ABV: 5.2%

Everybody seems to love Toppling Goliath beers these days and I have to say that I myself am a fan. They are, of course, best known for their hazy New England style IPAs, most famous of which are Pseudo Sue and King Sue. Still, they do other stuff, and I was intrigued to try their interpertatiopn of a classic Märzenbier when I saw Toppling Goliath Oktoberfest at Half Time Beverage. Into my (virtual) cart it went.

Toppling Goliath says:

Raise a glass of Oktoberfest in celebration, and watch as the light dances off its rich amber color. Enjoy a beautiful bouquet of soft caramel and biscuit before the first sip blankets your palate with malty notes of fresh-baked bread.

These days, just about every brewery has a bunch of hazy IPAs. Toppling Goliath has a bunch of hazy IPAs. Fortunately, just about every brewery has an Oktoberfest beer (some have two, usually a Märzen and a Festbier). This is a long running tradition for craft breweries to have an Oktoberfest offering in the fall, going way back to the mid-eighties. Samuel Adams Octoberfest and Hope Oktoberfest Beer coming to mind as a few of the first I ever drank around that timeframe.

Toppling Goliath Oktoberfest has an alcohol content of 5.2% by volume and I paid $5.49 for my pint can from Half Time. Total Wine sells it in 4-packs of pint cans and/or 6pakcs of 12-ounce cans for $10.99 each. A 12-pack of 12-ounce cans runs $21.99 there. My can was stamped PKG 07/11/23. I drank it on September 24^th.

Toppling Goliath Oktoberfest pours to a brilliant orange amber color with a medium sized head of creamy foam and a nose of fresh bread and toasted nuts. Taking a sip, the beer is soft and bready with hints of caramel and toast. It is light and refreshing and seems a bit light in the malt for a German Märzen, but I do get toasty nutty goodness here. The beer is balanced with a gentle hop bitterness that makes me want another sip.

All in all, this is a tasty Oktoberfest brew that I would buy again.

Glad I tried it?  T